Trump, Cruz Battle in GOP Presidential Debate

By: Jim Owen | January 17, 2016

A war of words between Donald Trump and Ted Cruz dominated Thursday night’s Republican presidential debate.

Cruz, referring to Trump, declared that “not a lot of conservatives come out of Manhattan.” The Texas senator, whose parents immigrated to the United States from Cuba, was firing back at the billionaire businessman’s recent remark that “not a lot of evangelicals come out of Cuba.”

One of the Fox Business Network moderators asked Cruz about his allegation that Trump “embodies New York values.” The senator responded that “values in New York City are socially liberal,” and “focus around money and the media,” Breitbart News reported.

Cruz continued: “Not too many years ago, Donald did a long interview … he explained his views on a whole host of issues that were very, very different from the views he’s describing now. And his explanation, he said, ‘Look, I’m from New York, that’s what we believe in New York. Those aren’t Iowa values, but this is what we believe in New York.’ And so, that was his explanation.”

Trump replied: “Conservatives actually do come out of Manhattan, including William F. Buckley and others.” He recalled how New Yorkers responded to the 9/11 attacks. “New York is a great place. It’s got great people, it’s got loving people, wonderful people. When the World Trade Center came down, I saw something that no place on Earth could have handled more beautifully, more humanely than New York. … I have to tell you, that was a very insulting statement that Ted made,” Trump said.